Shaking my head, I walk out to my truck and like most men, I gather as much as possible in one trip, leaving the portable crib for last. Once it’s all inside, I hit my fob to lock the truck, then go about closing up and locking Phoebe’s house down for the night. Leaving everything in the living room, I follow the giggles I can hear ringing through the house until I get to the extra bathroom and see Phoebe on her knees in front of the tub, obviously soaked.
Bursting into laughter, I ask, “What on earth happened?”
She turns her head and I see a line of bubbles coursing down her cheeks which has me laughing even harder. “Go ahead and yuck it up, Mister Daddy. Your daughter grabbed the cup and flung it, tossing water everywhere!”
Meanwhile, Cami, who is obviously proud of her efforts, continues to babble away, splashing her hands on the water and chortling. It still amazes me that this little girl is mine to raise and protect. Thank fuck I’ve got brothers who are already in the parenting trenches because there’s no way I’d be able to handle it on my own.
“Do you want me to take over?” I question once I’ve managed to calm myself down.
She sighs while shaking her head. “No, there’s no sense in doing that, she’s almost finished, and you don’t need to get soaked. But I will give her to you in a second so you can get her dried off and dressed while I go get changed. Did you get everything inside?”
“Yeah, babe, I did. Just wasn’t sure where to put it, is all,” I admit.
“If you want, since you’ve got clients tomorrow, you can set her up in my room just in case she wakes up in the middle of thenight. No sense in your sleep being disrupted since I’m sure your folks would appreciate a steady hand while they’re getting their tattoos.”
“Let me go do that then,” I reply, appreciating her forethought. “Be right back and ready for the hand off.”
As I head back down the hallway, I hear her snickering and telling Cami, “You’re feeling your oats tonight, little girl, aren’t you? I’m glad your daddy called me, I’ve missed you so much!”
CHAPTER NINE
Phoebe
Ever since Eli called me for help when Cami got sick, we’ve fallen into a pattern of seeing each other several times a week. While he still utilizes Holly, Marnie, and Esther to watch her, whenever they’re not available, he calls me.
Of course, I never say no, because I wasn’t lying when I told him I was the primary caregiver for her when she was first born. Rosa was definitely not in a good place, and while I didn’t share this part with him, she had even considered putting Cami up for adoption, convinced she was going to be a horrible mother.
Thank God she didn’t. I’d miss out on seeing my little cousin grow up with a father who obviously dotes on her. The biggest issue I have, though, is I’ve caught feelings for Eli that I’m not sure he would reciprocate, given the fact that my cousin basically screwed him over.
I mean, on one hand, Rosa and I, we’re two totally different people, but on the other, we’re related by blood, and he may think I’ll be the same way, even though we were always polaropposites. Not only that, but I’m a bit leery about relationships based on how my very short-lived marriage ended up.
My mind drifts back to when I went back to school for my Bachelor of Nursing degree. I already had my Associate’s, as well as my actual nursing license, but knew going for my four-year degree would make me even more marketable than I already was. It was challenging working while going to school, of course, but in my sophomore year, I met Alex Carter and we really hit it off. Before long, we were living together and then one day, on a whim, we went to the courthouse and got married. Even though Ididchange my driver’s license and social security card, I never managed to get my nursing license changed over.
Since the marriage was dissolved and over with a short six months later, I’m glad I never went through all that paperwork because it’d be a fiasco to switch everything back, but Idoneed to get the documentation together to change my driver’s license and social security card at least. It’s time to fully reclaim who I am as a person, and Alex has been out of my life far longer than he was ever part of it.
Today, I’m heading out to Esther’s house to help the kids with a project they’re working on for the community fair that’s coming up. It’s one of the fundraisers that the club does to bring in money for various charities and club projects they support. Since Eli is working, I volunteered to oversee Cami, who will be coming with Holly and her kids.
“There, that should do it,” I mutter as I glance around the kitchen. I was on a whirlwind cleaning binge when Holly reached out to me, and I am always willing to spend time with that adorable peanut, so I said yes. But because I’ll be working the next four days in a row, I didn’t want to leave things partially done, which she understood.
“Oh, these are precious!” I exclaim as I look at what the kids have already done.
Apparently, the women are going to have a booth that sells baked goods, and the three older girls are coloring the stickers that will go on the containers. Esther, Holly, and Marnie have been baking up a storm and my job is to package what they’ve made before helping the girls seal them with their creations.
“We thought ‘sealed with love’ was perfect, all things considered,” Holly says. “Speaking of love, I know Prophet’s been hanging out with you quite a bit. How’s that going?”
“We’re just friends,” I quickly reply.
“Ah, but judging at how pink her cheeks are getting, I bet she wishes it was more,” Marnie teases. “You might as well face it, when these men focus on someone, it’s practically a done deal.”
Holly starts laughing as she nudges Marnie’s shoulder. “Pot meet kettle,” she taunts pointing between me and Marnie. At my bewildered look, she clarifies things for me. “Marnie couldn’t fathom the possibility that Ash was interested in her, and so she kept it friendly. Ash wasn’t willing to rock the boat and lose even that, yet they nearly lost their chance completely.”
Marnie nods, then adds, “We did, which would’ve majorly sucked, because not only is he my best friend, but he’s my husband now, too. If you like Prophet, you should definitely let him know, Phoebe.”
Clearing my throat, I launch into my reasoning behind not saying anything at all. “Okay, so hear me out. He dated my cousin foryearsand that seems to break the girl code, don’t you think? I mean, I honestly wouldn’t want to knowmebecause of how she kept him from being part of her life while she was pregnant or even after Cami was born, so I don’t want to rock the boat there, either.”
It’s not either of them who respond though, it’s Esther who takes the proverbial reins and gives me a few home truths. “Listen, Phoebe, when I first met Paul, and keep in mind that things were a lot different then as opposed to how they are now, he was dating my sister. They fought like cats and dogs, mostly at her instigation, and she would constantly break up with him over some perceived slight or another. He worked on his family’s farm and those days are from sunup until sundown, rain or shine, every single day without break. Because of that, he occasionally had to reschedule their dates, especially during calving season or when the harvest came in. She didn’t get it and would accuse him of seeing other girls. Meanwhile, I saw him coming over, half dead on his feet, to spend time with her, only for her to ignore him. She did this foryears,girls, until one day, he decided he’d had enough. He had nothing to prove to her, he was loyal, faithful, and a hard worker, and if she couldn’t trust what she was seeing with her own eyes, he wasn’t going to keep beating a dead horse, you know?”
“What did he do?” I whisper. The similarities are not lost on me; I know Rosa was usually the instigator in their break-ups, even though I didn’t know who ‘he’ was at the time.